It is interesting that in days gone by, wounds and infections were the biggest reasons to use herbs. Today, the medical herbalist is required more to focus on calming anxiety, strengthening an exhausted person, balancing hormone levels, supporting burned out adrenal glands, as well as the usual winter colds and ‘flu. Plant medicines are both immune boosting, as well as being directly anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-fungal.
They help us to stay calm so that we sleep well, and wake up feeling rested and ready to take on life again.
Herbs can relax muscles, down-regulate inflammation, promote tissue repair, stimulate the clearing of congested lungs, and reduce histamine attacks.
Over the years, I have found herbs to be wonderful at helping people to overcome post viral fatigue, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and more recently, Long Covid.
Herbal medicine can ameliorate the effects of aging such as arthritis, helping to maintain optimal brain function and supporting the digestive system. The old naturopaths used to say that all illness starts in the gut.
The list of what herbs can do is almost endless, and the versatility of plant medicine is both amazing, gentle and incredibly powerful. It is something which I am grateful to witness every day.